Exclusive: Movember’s Man and Boy Talk Victory

As the dust begins to settle on the month of mo’s, we’ve finally managed to grab some time with our respective victors to talk about the agony and ecstacy of the last five weeks.

Entin and Basford, freshly shorn...

** DONATE TO BITE UK  –  DONATE TO BITE US **

 

There’s one final update to come where we’ll detail exactly how much $$$ we’ve managed to raise for prostate cancer and LIVESTRONG (and your almost final chances to donate are above) however, in the meantime, let’s see what the great men had to say:

1. How do you feel about being crowned man/boy of movember?
Ari:  For the most part, indifferent. To truly put this in perspective though, let me answer your question with one of my own. What do waking up, eating and breathing have in common? The answer of course is that we expect these to happen, much as I did with this contest.
Matt:  Humbled. I have so many people to thank. Mainly, my parents and my long line of ancestors that excelled at growing poor facial hair. My girlfriend, for not giving up on me while I was receiving consistent ridicule. And, Jesus Christ.

2. Who is your Mo idol and why?
Ari:  Ron Burgundy, Anchorman. We have so much in common. We both care about delivering the news, drink scotch, love us some afternoon delight and consistently wear robes to pool parties.
Matt:  Adam Morrison, circa Gonzaga basketball 2006. He put a thin-haired mustache on the map the world hadn’t seen since the likes of Jimmy Buffet with his classic “pencil thin mustache” tune from the ‘70s.

3. What was your funniest Mo story during the month of Movember?
Ari:  This is kind of a tossup because there were two things that happened over and over again. First, I’m convinced people used this as an opportunity to finally tell me that they have a hard time taking me seriously as they walk out in the middle of meetings. The other reaction was outside of Bite. No matter who my wife and I ran into, people would run over to her, offer their condolences and look at me as if I’d just thrown a puppy off a roof. Ladies, I get it…you didn’t know how to react to my mustache because, to be honest, 60% of the time it works all the time.
Matt:  Those that could decipher a ‘tache certainly weren’t impressed, nor did they find it appealing. I overhead an otherwise friendly couple in a NYC bar laugh at my – as they put it – “homeless mustache.” So, they decided it necessary to not only cut down my personal hygiene, but also my financial well-being. Double whammy.

4. What design were you going for?
Ari:  There is just so much space between my nose and my upper lip that I discarded specific design and went for square footage. It’s like my facial hair was in a land grab ala Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman riding horses to stake their flags in the ground in the movie Far and Away. That’s right, my facial hair is just as dangerous as the wild, wild west.
Matt:  You know Linus from Charlie Brown? Those strings of hair he had on his head? That’s what my upper lip had in mind. I didn’t have a say in the matter.

5. Did your growth live up to your expectations?
Ari:  I’d say it met my expectations spot on. It’s more of a curse than a blessing when your family tree resides in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. In fact our family tree doesn’t have branches with leaves, we just have more hair.  
Matt:  Sadly, it blew my expectations out of the water. It was a stellar month for me.

6. Is this the first time you’ve attempted a mo?
Ari:  I tried once before when I didn’t know how to manscape my face. I stopped when people asked if was Michael J. Fox’s stunt double in Teen Wolf.
Matt:  I once thought I had grown a ‘mo, but realized I had in fact fallen down and scratched my lip. So, I think the answer to your question is yes.

7. Would you consider growing one permanently?
Ari:  This is a tough one because now that I shaved, my upper lip feels naked and I kind of miss it. Then I realized I look the opposite of good and was driving away anyone who ever cared about me. So I guess my answer is yes, I would grow one permanently and end up like Moses just drifting alone in a desert.
Matt:  I would, and I’ll tell you why. I had a total of 37 hairs on my upper lip, and I felt exactly 37X manlier in the month of Movember. I was exactly 37X more influential in every day discussions than your common, mo-less, male. I had vigor and life I had never experienced. I anticipate hitting puberty soon, and if I can get that up to 39, maybe 40, hairs I just might conquer this world yet.

8. Will you be taking part next year?
Ari:  Defending champions don’t take a year off. I expect to train in the off season and not let my endorsement deals distract me.
Matt:  You can bet your quivering lip I will.

 

 

Man of Movember 2009 Crowned!

Whether it was the weight of the campaigns or the weight of the tashes that finally swung it, who knows, but the polls have closed and after 30 days of fierce competition the results are in. The public has spoken and Bite Communications’ Man of Movember 2009 is…..

ARI ENTIN!

Ari, aged 28 from New York, was late to the game refusing to begin growing his mustache on his honeymoon (selfish) but achieved more in 19 days than most of us will manage in a lifetime. Here is the great mans progress over the last four weeks:

Entin's mo'volution, Weeks 2 - 5

A full Q&A with our winner will appear before the weeks through but, in the meantime, Ari went on the record as saying:

“I’d like to say I couldn’t have done it without your support but I could. This is the second happiest moment of my life, after getting my junior lifesaving badge in twelfth grade. Recognition from the people that matter is immense and, as tribute to the faith you’ve paid in me, I will be donating my mo to medical research.”

** DONATE TO BITE UK  –  DONATE TO BITE US **

The final standings for Man of Movember are shown below and, as you can see, Ari ‘edged’ the rest of the field by a whopping 22%. Britain’s highest place contributor, Matt Stewart, was rumored to have been so devastated at his loss that he immediately, and furiously, beat his top lip stoat to death.

And, in a clean sweep for New York, the Boy of November 2009 was crownned as…

MATTHEW BASFORD!

Matt, New York, aged 17 3/4, really came into his own over the last week of competition when the hairs on his muzzy actually started growing inwards. Basford led a strong campaign to win the hearts and minds of his adoring public

Basfords growth, weeks 1-5

“I normally don’t play games that I can’t win and this is no different. I played with Michael Jordan at Madison Squared Garden in 2005 but that doesn’t come anywhere near the elation I’m experiencing right now. I got here through a singular focus on my end goal and the mental strength to inhibit my mo from growing. This victory, however, has given me a taste for the main prize – watch your back guys, next year I’m going for the big one.”

The Boy of Movember field was a tighter run thing. Basford edged out Toronto’s Will Willis by just 9 percent.

It’s not over yet. Money is still pouring in ($9,798 globally at the last count) and we’re very aware we still haven’t shared our final final galery of all the Biters and their mo’s. Expect one, well maybe two, more posts before we let Movember 2009 slip from our grip forever.

Choose your “Man of Movember 2009”

The average mustache has between 5,000 and 10,000 hairs. With 32 manly biters globally taking part in the glorious

Hynes: Disgraced and disqualified...but still fundraising

month of Movember, that means each hair on a Bite chaps top lips has raised a massive 95 cents (or 57 pence). Yes, Bite’s Movember efforts have garnered a whopping $9,500+ to-date…and it aint over yet.

As our final (well, nearly final) plea for donations, please contribute to the UK team here and US team here.

And, in our final effort to draw one last Mo’ment of fun out of this marvelous month, we’ve decided to – well – put it to the common vote. Yes, you – the mo-adoring public – will have the honor of choosing not only your “Man”, but also your “Boy of Movember” as well.

Detailed below you will find the five front runners from Bite across the globe in each category. ‘Man of Movember’ is obviously the behemoth that has cultivated the thickest, bushiest most mes-mo-rizing top lip in the last 30 days. Boy is for those try-hards who, despite their best efforts, are still being asked if they were ever taking part in the first place.

You have until end-of day Friday Pacific Time to vote. Can I encourage those contenders in each category to launch their own campaigns to win their respective crowns and maybe even raise a few final extra coins in the process.

It’s been a hard fought month gentlemen. May the best Mo win.

 MAN OF MOVEMBER

1. ‘Biggles’ Berry: ‘Bezza’ has been a front runner from the start and doesn’t disappoint with his final pic looking as resplendent as the fictional world war 1 comic book hero he clearly modelled himself on. Tom, if we could give you this award based purely on your Mr Spock eyebrow pose, we would.

2. McStache Matt: Despite his youth, McLernon essentially had this wrapped up on the west coast from day one putting many of the older entrants from Bite SF to shame. Matt puts the success of McStache down to good breeding and Miracle-gro.

3: Lady Tickler Lederer: The key to wearing a mustache successfully is attitude and the scowl on Tony’s face is the perfect accompaniment to the bristles on his top lip. Undoubtedly the tidiest of all entries, the question is whether Tony’s unwillingness to take a risk with his mo is going to cost him dear.   

 

 

Mo Title Contenders

4. Entin the Unstoppable: OK, so, we considered disqualification based on the fact that Ari failed to shave the rest of his face for the last few days but there’s absolutely no denying the quality of growth. Entin also wins the sub-category of “having to shave to the highest point on his cheeks”.

5. The Beastmaster: Matt Stewart let everyone down last week by failing to submit an entry but has come on strong once again in the final week. His immaculately groomed, ginger horseshoe lies somewhere between Son’s of Anarchy and Beast-Man out of He-Man. Matt also wins the sub-category of “highest proportion of facial to head hair”.

TO VOTE FOR YOUR MAN OF MOVEMBER, PLEASE CLICK THE BELOW LINK.

Who is your Man of Movember? Wearing their Mo like a true Magnum PI… (polls)

Hynes: letting the school down

BREAKING NEWS: It’s with a heavy heart that at this late stage in the competition I have to inform you that former front runner Tony Hynes has been disqualified for, well, being a big girl and shaving his mo two days short of deadline  BECAUSE HIS WIFE TOLD HIM TO. Tone, i think i speak for everyone this side of the Atlantic when I say you let us down.            

BOY OF MOVEMBER

1. Growthless Grant Currie: Given his advancing years, more was expected of Cuzza however its taken to week five for people to visibly identify any formation of hair beneath Grantie’s nose.

2. Mo-free Matt Basford: Matt is hopeful his youthful looks will win the popular ladies vote and mask the fact that his muzzy could have been etched on with a HB pencil

3. Glabrous* Greg Salmon: Like Basford, Greg still has youth on his side so shouldn’t despair that 720 hours growth has given him as much hair on his top lip as a newborn.

das lads

4. Weeping Will Willis: Will pulls off his best victorian gentlemen look in this pic but it can’t hide the fact that his mo could be removed by a strong lick from his cat.

5. Clive “The CE-MO” Armitage: That cheeky east end grin hides the fact that the slug currently perching on Clive’s top lip is there largely thanks to wire wool and superglue

At this point it’s also important to note that Will and Matt Basford are the only people to get bored halfway through the month and shave off their mo’s. Subsequently please take into account that they are the only people to have grown TWO MO’S in the last 4 weeks (although also take into account it’s unlikely they’d have grown any more if they’d gone the whole way through).

TO VOTE FOR YOUR BOY OF MOVEMBER PLEASE CLICK THE BELOW LINK:

Who is your Boy of Movember? Try as they might they can’t muster more than a whisker…

Voting will close end of play Friday with our men and boys being announced on Monday 12/6

Let the games begin!

*Glabrous apparently means bald. It’s the only word Thesaurus.com could throw up that came anywhere near hair free

 

Global Mo Update – Week 4

It’s been a frenetic 7 days of competition since our last mo’gress update and, with just 120 hours of growth time left until we call Movember proceedings to a halt, its time to look at the leaderboard in a little more detail.

However, before we do, lets not forget that this is a charity effort. To date, the US and UK offices combined have raised a whopping $7,058.87 (4,225 pounds) for prostate cancer and LIVESTRONG. However that is still 3K off our grand target of $10,000 (or, depending on how you look at it, $2,000 more than the actual target we agreed before a member of the Mo team got confused, doubled it, then emailed the world.) Regardless, Thanks to everyone that’s donated to date. Those that are still feeling generous, can give to the US team here and the UK team here.

Anyway, back to that leaderboard…

The Leaders

#1: Antony Hynes Esq, Bite San Francisco: despite some stiff competition, Tony’s retaining top spot on the West Coast. He’s been likened to a fast food chef, 70’s sports commentator and truck driver however, with this morning’s adornment of green headwear, there’s only one true comparison.

Tone reconsiders that career as a plumber

The smart money is still on Hynes to take the title.

#2. Thomas Plainview Berry Jnr, Bite London: Tom lost top spot in the regional London heat last week but has regained the lead thanks largely thanks to the rest of the challengers forgetting to submit a pic. Tom is promising extensive grooming, trimming and waxing over the next few days for the final presentation on Monday.

Tom does his best "Day-Lewis"

He has also assured us that There Will Be Blood if that doesn’t help him take top spot overall.

#3. Ari Entin, Bite New York: The week didn’t get off to the best start for Entin being asked on Monday if “Ari was a girls name?” (short for Ariana?) however things have improved dramatically pre-Thanksgiving with him retaining the New York lead and moving into third spot globally. Let’s not forget Ari didn’t even enter the race till November 10th and has still eclipsed most of the pack AND still has a very real chance of challenging for the #1 spot.

Entin and the Bandit

Okay, so the final lookey like was weak but its the best I could do under pressure.

The Challengers

Hovering just outside are these four characters. Judged on volume, consistency and design they’re outside bets for the title but any one could still break into the top 3. 

Lederer - McLernon - Mack - Patel (grimace optional)

Lederer is solid. McLernon and Patel both look like they could wear muzzy’s any month of the year and still get away with it. Mack just looks like he should be kept away from polite society and animals.

And the Rest

The rest of the field presents no real challenge for the official title of “Man of Movember” however we guess you want to see them anyway:

Best of the Rest

And yes, Matt Basford (2nd from top, far right) really does wear a bandana when he’s outside the workplace. Tune in next Monday for the final global update where Bite Communications “Mr Movember 2009” will be crowned.  We are already on the edge of our seats.

As a footnote, Bite San Francisco held a hugely entertaining Mo Party last night to bump up the coffers. I will, however, save those highlights for a separate post.

Mo’volution

OK, so its not quite like the guy with a time lapse camera who took a photo of himself in the same clothes everyday for forty years to document the ageing process  BUT…it’s pretty damn close. Find below photos of those committed souls who’ve taken pics at six day intervals since the marvellous month of Movember began.

Impressive innit

Note how the jump from weeks 1 – 2 is startling, yet the evolution weeks 2 – 3 is barely even noticeable. Not only is this a charity fundraiser, it is also a science experiment!

Roll on week 4.

Week 3 Mo’gress Update

It’s starting to get hairy in here. After 17 days of growth, Bite men across the globe are veering between looking debonair and homeless. Our fundraising efforts  now total over $5K globally which puts us halfway through the month and halfway to our target (reminder – you can still donate to the US here and the UK here). However what you all care about is how we’re looking so please find below this weeks mo’gress update and – most importantly – the clearest indication yet of who the front runners are for that coveted title of “Bite Man of Movember”. Our office by office run-down begins with….

Bite London

Bite London lads show off their caterpillars

It’s a fiercely competitive crowd at Bite UK. Despite there being a prevalence of goatee’s (presumably in an effort to minimize ridicule which, as we outlined at the start of this competition, is actually cheating), there’s no denying that there’s hair out there. Tom Berry (bottom row, second from left), recapturing the magic of his borstal mugshot, cuts an intimidating figure while Lambert (bottom row, second from right) still refuses to be pictured above the nose until we find trace of a muzzy.  Honorable mention also goes to Clive (bottom right)…yes, because he’s the CEO but more importantly because this picture shows him as the East End market trader we all knew he could be.

Front Runner – Matt Stewart: Although there’s still time for Berry to snatch back the lead, as it stands Stewart’s fully developed ginger handlebar is, by a narrow margin, the most impressive showing from blighty. This man reeks of “quiet confidence”

Next up…

New York

East Coast Competition...

So despite initial growth spurts, progress seems to have slowed a little in New York. Mills’ (left) is still strong and, most importantly, well landscaped. Basford (middle) seems to be going for his own interpretation of Zorr0 while Walker (right) has finally realised the inherent patchiness of his facial hair means he’s required to attempt the widest and least symettrical handlebar in the history of the competition. 

Front Runner – Ari Entin: Ari joined the competition late but his position as leader of the pack should come as no surprise given his natural hirsuiteness. His entry has yet to reach full stride however progress in a matter of a week has already intimidated his office colleagues into submission. 

And finally… 

San Francisco

and challengers from the West...

The West Coast puts out a talented team with three solid challengers for the San Francisco divisional title. Patel (bottom right) has played a low key game to date but is carrying his mo with a swagger; Clarke (top right), despite resembling a gypsy bare knuckle boxer, has found his muzzy far more impactful than his natural pheromones, or eharmony, in attracting the opposite sex while Chase (top row, second right) proves it is possible to wear a tash with style.

Front Runner – Tony Hynes: San Francisco General Manager Hynes has point blankly refused to be photographed till this moment and we now know why.  The “To-Mo” has had a mixed reception…clients call it “resplendent”…colleagues call it “suave”…his family call it “terrifying”.

13 days to go folks. Stay tuned to see how this one finishes.

Global Mo Update

As we enter the second week of Movember, no doubt you’re all wondering how Tash’s are progressing across Bite’s respective geographies. As expected, the packs are separating into the mens men and the boys boys. To allow easy evaluation of muzzy development we have included day zero pics alongside today’s (day 11). In some cases, it’s not easy to spot the difference.

A office by office account of progress can be found below. If you have yet to donate, we would hugely grateful if you could support the brits here and the yanks here on their respective quests for crumb catchers.

Bite New York

(Attempted) handlebar is clearly the theme on the East coast as Walker and Mills (middle) have both opted to try and grow hairy droopers. Basford has gone for a slightly more fashionable trimmed jonny depp effort while Willis (bottom) got bored and shaved his off yesterday for being too “mossy”. Will will probably be the only man to have grown two mustaches for charity this month

Noo Yoik

Bite London

The competition in Europe is really split down the middle. Clearly the youth of the British side is holding them back, however some of the veteran competitors are helping the field make some positive progress. Berry (top), Stewart and Lederer (see “best of the rest” below) are all already presenting themselves as the real threats and have a respectable top-lip covering only a week and a half in. We’re questioning whether the other guys realised Movember means they need to stop shaving.

London

Bite San Francisco

The strongest showing to-date is unquestionably coming from the West coast of the United states. Mack (top) has an air of frenchman with his unashamedly wispy effort. Rank outsider Clark (2nd from top) has proved that even the smoothest men can muster the fuzz while McLernon (bottom) is a ‘hairs’ breadth away from claiming the “Man of Movember” title with a full two weeks left to play.

Frisco

The Best of the Rest

So there were several folk who, through sheer laziness, missed out on week 1 pics. These handsome gentlemen are highlighted below and, as you’ll see, there is some SERIOUS competition from all locations. Interestingly the race for the wooden spoon (that’s finishing last for you Americans) is already underway with CEO Clive (center) and Global Director Grant (bottom right) duking it out for the title of “least hairy face in christendom’. Ari on the other hand (bottom left) is so confident of victory that he’s shaved for the last two weeks to give everyone else a fair crack of the whip.

more hairy (and hair-free) men of bite

Race to the Mo looks like it could be going down to the wire. More updates to follow.

Movember 4th Newsflash

First off, perusing reception’s magazine collection this morning i was delighted to see that Time Magazine had entered into the spirit of Movember with this cover…

Time Mo'gazine

You really know a movement’s taken off when the biggest news magazine in the world chooses to deface a Wall Street bigwig in the name of charidee*

Secondly, I received this image via email this morning:

Dog Mo

The defacement of my King Charles Cavalier Spaniel calender in San Francisco has been a monthly tradition since i put it up in January. God bless the creative soul who added what appears to be a textured twirler to this fella.

Finally, i stumbled across this pic on Bite’s official Bitemarks blog earlier today:

Lederer Mo

Stateside, we’d like to offer our congrats to Tony. He has stayed under the radar in the run up to the competition but is clearly cultivating something quite special on that top lip – not to mention the fact that he adorned it to a PR awards ceremony. Unless, he’s actually not partaking in Movember and has been growing that caterpillar just for the helluvit. In which case, congrats on just being manly.

In fundraising news we’re holding steady at the 1K mark. That’s 10% of the target and 13% of the month gone. Dig deep and sponsor here.

*Note this issue of Time Magazine is actually nothing to do with Movember. Something about why everyone hates Wall Street. Just thought it fitted nicely with the theme

And they’re off…

The top lips of Bite gentlemen far and wide enjoyed their last contact with a razor blade for 30 days this weekend as the highly anticipated month of Movember got underway. We thought this presented the ideal opportunity to give you the inside track on the runners and riders in this years competition. A form guide, by office, can be found below:

Bite UK: (clockwise from top left) Berry, Lawal, Moorer, Lambert, Salmon

Bite UK: Although there are some question marks over exactly when members of the London office stopped shaving/started cheating it is unquestionably a strong opening. After only forty eight hours in the trenches UK team captain Tom Berry is already well on his way to cultivating the perfect Merv Hughes. But remember, two days does not a Movember make.

Bite NY: Walker, Mills, Basford, Mack

Bite New York: There could be one or two real contenders in this office. Mack, making a guest appearance on the East Coast, has already amassed more hair on his face than he has on his head while Mills is clearly smugly biding his time before sprouting really hits fifth gear. Basford and Fingers, however, are just hoping puberty kicks in sooner rather than later.

Bite SF: White, Clarke, McLernon

Bite SF: Already criticized for having a few star performers but lacking any real strength in depth, the West Coast has fielded a mixed bag for its opening shot. Matt McStache was shaving while still in the womb; Whitey has spent many years cultivating the perfect homeless look while Clarkey normally goes no more than a day without running a damp flannel across his face to get rid of any excess fluff. Watch these guys – there could be a potential all star in their midst.

Two days in, twenty-eight to go. Oh, don’t forget to donate – we have already hit $1,000…only $9,000 to go

Meaning Behind the Mo

Ladies and gentlemen (yes, all genders are welcome), start your hairy engines – the great month of Movember is upon us. Gone are the clean shaven boy scouts of Bite, replaced by the grizzled men of the ‘tache. While our efforts (some better than others) to grow this symbol of manliness will be well documented in embarrassing fashion, let us not forget the meaning of the mo. Prostate cancer affects 1 in 6 American men over their lifetime and 8,400 new cases of testicular cancer have been reported in 2009 alone. Both of these diseases are menacing and their ill effects reach far and wide. But, if there’s one thing to know about the men of Bite – it’s that we’re not afraid of a fight.

The Movember organization describes the role of the moustache like this: “A Mo Bro is a walking billboard for the cause as his new look opens the door for him to talk about cancers affecting men – making the moustache a symbol, much like the pink ribbon is for breast cancer.”

This effort shines a necessary light on men’s health issues, helping us band together to fight the good fight. This strikes a particular cord in my own personal battle, taking on testicular cancer only a couple short months ago. For those who have had a similar unfortunate experience, you know the battle is never truly over, as cancer has a unique ability to come back for more after you think you have it down. Well, as they say, there’s power in numbers, and thanks to your support (donation page here), we’re able to unite with our hairy upper lips to conquer this beast.

Please help us in whatever way you can. The cause is noble (donations specifically reach the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Lance Armstrong Foundation), and we promise to have some fun along the way. May the best (and worst) ‘tache win!

Matt Basford